Parallel Advisors LLC Has $2.64 Million Holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX)

Parallel Advisors LLC lowered its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX - Free Report) by 25.7% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 5,450 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock after selling 1,885 shares during the quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC's holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $2,643,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 60,572.3% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,425,070 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock worth $1,175,722,000 after buying an additional 2,421,073 shares in the last quarter. AdvisorNet Financial Inc boosted its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 8.6% during the first quarter. AdvisorNet Financial Inc now owns 1,473 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock worth $714,000 after buying an additional 117 shares in the last quarter. Bath Savings Trust Co acquired a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the first quarter worth $202,000. Quent Capital LLC boosted its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 4.5% during the first quarter. Quent Capital LLC now owns 513 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock worth $249,000 after buying an additional 22 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sage Capital Advisors llc boosted its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 8.7% during the first quarter. Sage Capital Advisors llc now owns 601 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock worth $291,000 after buying an additional 48 shares in the last quarter. 90.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have weighed in on VRTX. Bank of America lifted their price objective on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $555.00 to $567.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, March 31st. Erste Group Bank lowered Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, May 23rd. The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Tuesday, May 6th. Scotiabank cut their price objective on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $450.00 to $442.00 and set a "sector perform" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, May 6th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and issued a $535.00 target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a report on Tuesday, May 6th. Fourteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $515.04.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Up 0.8%

VRTX stock traded up $3.38 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $445.43. 1,179,008 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,419,761. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01, a quick ratio of 2.35 and a current ratio of 2.69. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 1-year low of $377.85 and a 1-year high of $519.88. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $469.67 and its 200 day simple moving average is $460.75. The firm has a market cap of $114.39 billion, a P/E ratio of -202.47, a P/E/G ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 0.51.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, May 5th. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.06 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $4.29 by ($0.23). Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a negative return on equity of 2.02% and a negative net margin of 4.86%. The business had revenue of $2.77 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.85 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $4.76 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 2.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 15.63 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Vertex Pharmaceuticals

In other news, EVP David Altshuler sold 3,231 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $500.00, for a total value of $1,615,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 26,512 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $13,256,000. This represents a 10.86% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.20% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

About Vertex Pharmaceuticals

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated, a biotechnology company, engages in developing and commercializing therapies for treating cystic fibrosis (CF). It markets TRIKAFTA/KAFTRIO for people with CF with at least one F508del mutation for 2 years of age or older; SYMDEKO/SYMKEVI for people with CF for 6 years of age or older; ORKAMBI for CF patients 1 year or older; and KALYDECO for the treatment of patients with 1 year or older who have CF with ivacaftor.